Chocolate Crackers

Sometimes the strangest food combinations are surprisingly the best. I love the pairing of sweet and salt, but when I first saw saltine crackers in a dessert recipe, I was skeptical.

This is super easy to make, and you can store the ingredients for entertaining emergencies - that is if you can refrain from eating the Van Otis chocolate in advance.




Ingredients
Salted-top saltine crackers - approximately 45-48
8 ounces of Van Otis Dark Chocolate Bark - approximately 30 squares
1 stick of butter, melted
1/2 cup of sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an ungreased cookie sheet with whole saltine crackers. Break crackers to fill in the edges.

Melt one stick of butter in microwave or on stovetop. Stir in sugar. Drizzle butter and sugar mixture onto crackers.

Put cookie sheet into the oven for approximately 5 to 6 minutes.

While the crackers are in the oven, slowly melt Van Otis Dark Chocolate Bark either in the microwave or on the stovetop, being careful not to scorch.

When the butter begins to bubble on the crackers, remove cookie sheet from oven. Pour and spread melted chocolate on top of the butter/sugar mixture. Don’t worry about consistent texture. Crackers may be exposed in some spots.

Allow chocolate to harden and break into pieces. Crackers should be stored in a sealed container, under your bed if you prefer not to share.

Peace Treatsy

There were so many notable conflicts during the 1970s and 1980s including the Vietnam War, bombings in Beirut, and who could forget the collision of chocolate and peanut butter. It wasn’t uncommon to hear, “You got your chocolate in my peanut butter!” and vice versa. I think we might have averted the chocolate/peanut butter argument if someone had thought to combine chocolate and liquor instead. Imagine a commercial where someone is walking along the sidewalk with a chocolate bar and accidentally collides with someone carrying a paper-bagged pint. Instead of an argument ensuing, I envision a euphoric scene with hearts, butterflies, and maybe even a pink unicorn - both parties are just that happy.

This kind of bliss exists at 341 Elm Street in Manchester, New Hampshire and at www.vanotis.com. Van Otis Chocolates’ confectioners have partnered some delicious chocolates and spirits including candied discs of Fragole Z Wine, Chocolate Raspberry Port Wine, Bacca Z Wine, French Brandy, and Cabin Fever Maple Whisky. Van Otis has also handcrafted the following truffles; some offers are limited, so hurry in!

Eggnog Truffle - These truffles are thickly layered with dark and milk chocolate and lightly sugar-coated. The creamy eggnog center has a hint of rum and nutmeg. It’s definitely a holiday-flavored treat.

Green Fairy Truffle - This truffle is a work of art with its powdered, mint green exterior. The extra creamy dark chocolate and strong absinth center is encased by a dark chocolate shell.

Cabin Fever Maple Whisky Truffle - This is another subtle alcohol offering with an interesting crunchy, dark chocolate exterior. The creamy chocolate center has a hint of maple flavor and an aftertaste of whiskey.

Baileys Truffle - A slightly bitter powdered exterior coats a milk chocolate shell, which encases a creamy chocolate and Irish cream center. These truffles are delicious!

Our Sheepish Lion

Nearly a year ago my husband and I decided to surprise our kids with a bombshell - a dog. Three out of four of us have extreme pet allergies, so the kids had resigned themselves to a dogless childhood. When my husband and I discovered that the poodle breed was an option, we began our covert search for the perfect pet.

Based on friends’ and family’s success with rescue adoption, we decided this was our best option. There are so many unwanted dogs no longer in the “cute puppy phase”, and we were looking for a grown dog.

Lambert (based on the Disney animation) arrived at Logan Airport from Illinois in December 2009. She’s a two-year old, black toy poodle with an amazingly passive disposition. Her foster family told us that she was rescued from a puppy mill, and she had enjoyed her rescue days with lots of other animals on a farm.

Today, Lambert relishes her role as sole family pet. She’s an equal opportunity lover, silly, and amazingly smart. We strongly recommend rescue adoption to anyone considering a pet.

Van Otis Chocolates, IncrediBREW, and the Animal Rescue League of New Hampshire have partnered to create a chocolate cordial that features the award-winning chocolate raspberry port made by IncrediBREW as part of their Animal Rescue League series of wines. Partial proceeds from the cordial sales will be donated to the Animal Rescue League of New Hampshire.

The cordials can be purchased at IncrediBREW, Van Otis Chocolates, and the Animal Rescue League’s fundraising events. For more information, visit the companies’ websites: www.vanotis.com, www.incredibrew.com, www.rescueleague.org.

Dress for Dinner

Unfortunately, mealtime etiquette is a fairly low priority for our family. With our hectic schedules we take pride in actually having eaten rather than accomplishing that task with polish and grace. Seriously, it’s not easy enforcing manners while eating a nugget on the car ride from practice to rehearsal.

Holidays are our opportunity for a slowdown. I look forward to a festive table and even make an effort to put the utensils in their proper order and position. I’m drawn to centerpieces, but my very practical side knows that they typically make a short-lived appearance before swiftly being replaced by the meal. So I’m constantly on the hunt for smaller, more permanent solutions to dress up the holiday table.

This year I’ve decided to add a surprise and no, I don’t mean a salad fork. Sidling the dinner plate will be a piece of chocolate in the small, covered dishes that I recently purchased at an unnamed, local retailer. (Don’t You Just Love a Bargain?) These dishes were intended for individual butter servings, but I think they’ll be perfect sweet treat holders. When dinner guests find a Van Otis decorative truffle or foiled chocolate next to their plate, the burning question won’t be which fork to use but whether or not to eat dessert first. No need to consult Emily Post for that answer.